The invention concerns a system for gravimetrically combining individual bulk material components in at least one transport container, comprising a plurality of storage containers for storing the bulk material components, each being equipped with one dosing unit in order to transfer the respective bulk material component into the transport container, wherein each of the storage containers is associated with one weighing device disposed below each storage container, and at least one transport container which can be moved between the dosing units of the supply containers along a guidance and cooperates with the weighing means.
There are conventional systems of this type for dosing and, if necessary, for mixing individual bulk material components in accordance with a predetermined composition, wherein the bulk material components may e.g. be components of colors, such as colorants, pigments etc., food, pharmaceutical agents and the like.
EP 1 707 926 A2 describes a system of this type for gravimetrically combining several bulk material components, which are stored in separate storage containers, in one or several transport containers, which can be displaced on a guidance disposed below the supply containers and into which the bulk material components can be transferred from the supply containers using dosing units associated with the supply containers. The guidance is thereby formed by rails along which one or more shuttles roll, which receive the transport containers. In order to ensure gravimetrical dosing, a stationary weighing means is positioned below each dosing unit, which is provided with a lifting means for moving a respective transport container from the shuttle to the weighing means for dosing a bulk material component from a respective supply container, and moving it back to the shuttle after the dosing process for supplying it to the next supply container or a discharge station.
It is the underlying purpose of the invention to further develop a system of the above-mentioned type in a simple and inexpensive fashion in order to improve its throughput and, in particular, be able to easily extend the system, if required, by adding further supply containers and/or transport containers without impairing the throughput thereof.